Mediacenter alternative6/4/2023 ![]() Select the Start button , select All Programs, and then select Windows Media Center. You can also use a mouse to open Media Center. When you reach the page titled Get the Most from Windows Media Center, select Yes to allow Media Center to download album cover art, DVD cover art, current TV guide listings, information from online media services, and other useful information. The first time you start Media Center, on the setup page, select Continue, and then select Custom. Using a Media Center remote, press the green Start button. However, let’s walk through the Custom setup options to give you a better idea of what you can do with Media Center. You can choose this option now if you want to jump right in. The quickest method is, not surprisingly, Express. The first time you start Media Center, you'll see an informational setup page and two setup options. Play any song in your music library, or play CDs or DVDs. No matter which way you choose, Media Center keeps you entertained by letting you: You can even stream your media over a home network to an Extender device. You can unleash the full power of Media Center by connecting your computer to an HDTV and using a Media Center remote to control all the action from your couch.Ī PC connected to a TV and a Media Center remoteĪnother option is to connect your computer to a standard computer monitor, keyboard, and mouse. When used to its fullest, Media Center can turn your computer into a powerful home entertainment hub. Moovida bills its TV-optimized interface as a “3D interface,” so it can provide some additional eye candy.Windows Media Center is included in some editions of Windows 7. It has two different interfaces – one optimized for file management on a PC and one optimized for finding and playing content on a TV. However, if you’re not happy with the above options, you may want to give Moovida a go. It also doesn’t provide any integrated TV recording, unlike XBMC and MediaPortal. We honestly wouldn’t recommend this option – there’s no reason to use spyware-packed installers when there are so many other good options higher on this list. If you do try this one, be sure to uncheck it all. The Windows installer is packed with spyware and other junk that you’re opted into by default. Moovida is the least well known option on this list. Update: This software appears to be unsupported now. Like XBMC, it contains the standard PVR features for playing, recording, and pausing live TV, laying DVDs, and watching online video services. If you’re not happy with XBMC’s interface, you might want to give MediaPortal a try. MediaPortal was originally a derivative of XBMC, but it’s been completely rewritten. Unlike XBMC and MediaPortal, Plex doesn’t support watching or recording live TV. You could also use the apps for iOS and Android devices to stream media to all of your devices from the central server. With Plex, you could make one computer in your house a media server and access it using the Plex Media Center on your home theater PC. It contains two components – the Plex Media Server, which is the backend, and the Plex Media Center, which is the frontend. Plex, based off XBMC, is another fairly popular media player. We’ve covered installing Kodi add-ons in the past. It can also stream YouTube, Pandora, and more via add-ons. In addition to interfacing with a TV capture card for live TV and recording, it supports every type of media format you’d want. Today, Kodi runs on a variety of operating systems, including Windows, Mac OS X, Linux–even Android and iOS. ![]() ![]() ![]() Kodi was formerly known as XBMC, and was was originally created for modded Xboxes. ![]() Kodi is probably the most popular alternative to Windows media Center out there. If you want an interface to play back streaming video from your couch, these modern apps may be a convenient alternative to a new media center application. Apps for Netflix, Hulu, and other media services look awfully similar to media center interfaces. Modern apps deserve an honorable mention. ![]()
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